The risk of a no-deal Brexit is "palpable", a top EU chief declared today as he demanded a written plan from Boris Johnson to break the deadlock.
Jean-Claude Juncker hit out at the Prime Minister for refusing to hand over a blueprint to solve the issue of the Irish border after Brexit .
In an apparent softening of language, the European Commission President said he had "no emotional attachment" to the Irish backstop - the EU's key clause to keep the border open.
Instead he said he'd "stand by the objectives it is designed to achieve". That appeared to shift his long-standing claim that the backstop can't be ditched.
But Mr Juncker - who met Boris Johnson on Monday - also warned there must be “operational proposals in writing” from the UK side to break the deadlock.
It comes after that UK officials have written plans, but are deliberately refusing to leave them with Brussels counterparts amid fears they could be leaked.
Amid cheers from Brexit Party MEPs, he told the European Parliament: "I said to Prime Minister Johnson that I had no emotional attachment to the safety net, to the backstop.
"But I stated that I stand by the objectives that it is designed to achieve.
"And that is why I called on the Prime Minister to come forward with operational proposals in writing for practical steps which would allow us to achieve those objectives.
"Now until such time as those proposals have been presented, I will not be able to tell you, looking you straight in the eye, that any real progress has been achieved."
It came amid furious attacks on Boris Johnson - who compared himself to the Incredible Hulk - from fellow Eurocrats in Strasbourg.
European Parliament Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt fumed: "I know and you know that Boris Johnson likes a lot to compare himself with movie characters.
“Well, concerning citizens’ rights, instead of playing the angry Hulk I think he should inspire himself by another character - the caring nanny from the film Mrs Doubtfire.”
Mr Juncker added: "The talks we had were friendly, constructive and - in part - positive.
"The Commission is prepared to work day in day out morning until night - well with a few breaks - to try to find the technical and political solutions we need.
"But I’m not sure we’ll get there. There’s very little time remaining.
"But what I do know is we have to keep trying."
Earlier in the debate, Finland's EU affairs minister said no-deal was "quite likely" and the situation "rather bleak" in a damning attack on the UK.
"The UK has not tabled any concrete proposals yet," Tytti Tuppurainen told the European Parliament. "Still the UK government is insisting on its red lines."
She added: "As the deadline of October 31 is fast approaching we are faced with more rather than less uncertainty."
EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier added: "We need a legally operative solution in the Withdrawal Agreement which fully responds to each one of the problems, which addresses each one of the risks created by Brexit."
